


Love vs. Stardom

by EXOKingJongdae



Series: Kim Jongdae's Drabble Compilation [2]
Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Friends to Lovers, M/M, rivals!au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-20
Updated: 2020-09-20
Packaged: 2021-03-07 18:13:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,393
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26561950
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EXOKingJongdae/pseuds/EXOKingJongdae
Summary: When you're given the choice between LOVE and STARDOM, which would you choose?Jongdae and Kyungsoo dreamt of STARDOM together ever since they were little kids. They built their dreams around each other, thinking that they would both achieve them at the same time. Little did they know that fate had other plans.Now they are rivals from different Entertainment Companies and are pitted against each other. What will they do? Lie about their connection with each other or reawaken their lost friendship. What if that friendship was a mask for a deeper attraction? What if it was LOVE?
Relationships: Do Kyungsoo | D.O/Kim Jongdae | Chen
Series: Kim Jongdae's Drabble Compilation [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1572301
Kudos: 5





	Love vs. Stardom

**Author's Note:**

> Another story ported from my Asianfanfics page. I hope you enjoy <3\. [Originally posted on AO3 under ChenToMeIsEverything but decided to make a new account in AO3 instead]
> 
> Unbeta'd. I apologize for the spelling and grammar mistakes.

'It's not that simple', Jongdae thought to himself as he watches Kyungsoo get crowned the winner of Mcountdown! for the third time. Jongdae himself had won the previous three weeks but what made this loss especially hard was that his former companion was the one who dethroned him. Taken away from his thoughts, Jongdae made an effort to show that he was happy and okay with the loss by smiling at the cameras and waving to the fans. After the broadcast was announced to be over, he sighed and left. He was walking carefully, with his head down, to his dressing room when he bumped into someone.

"I'm sorr--" Jongdae began, his eyes coming into contact with a pair of luscious brown ones. 

"It's okay. How have you been Chen?" That struck a bullet through his heart. Jongdae never imagined his former best friend to call him by his stage name.

"I've been good. Congratulations on your win D.O" Jongdae gave him a nod and left, leaving the equally shocked boy by himself. 'That was one painful encounter' thought Jongdae as he neared his dressing room. When he went in, he was met by the president of his current company: YG Entertainment. With a quick bow of respect and acknowledgment, Jongdae sat beside him.

"You did well out there Chen. Although you didn't win, you showed how truly talented you are. I am proud of you." YG said. Chen smiled. He was lucky. Other companies would have wanted their artists to win and bring prestige and income to the company but YG specifically treasured his artists and want them to be known for their music and nothing else. 

"Thank you, Sir. I am happy knowing that I am making you proud." was Jongdae's only reply. Usually, he would turn to this perfect conversationalist and bring up random things to talk about with the president while the staff packed up to leave. But currently, he was lost in his own thoughts. Memories started to cloud his mind and a melodious voice filled his whole body. Kyungsoo's.

_"Again." Their teacher instructed him. It was the fifth time he had to repeat a verse for a popular song he and Kyungsoo were supposed to do for their entertainment company auditions. It wasn't that Jongdae was a bad singer: it was just that his passion often overtook his technique, making him sound pitchy and amateurish. He tried again but alas the result was no different. "No no no no no!" The teacher shouted. She took back her composure and smiled at the little boy. "Let's try this. Let's listen to Kyungsoo sing your part and then try to emulate him and then I'll let you sing it together." Their voice instructor signaled at Kyungsoo to begin and he only gave a small smile to his best friend before he started singing. As expected, Kyungsoo did it correctly. Not wanting to be upstaged by his best friend, Jongdae imitated the boy completely and earned praise from his teacher. "Good. Now together. Hana, Dhul, Shet!"_

_And life continued on with that same formula: Jongdae struggled with his singing while Kyungsoo continued to soar with his talent. Kyungsoo never boasted, or even put Jongdae in his place. They both shared their dream of becoming singers together and that didn't change until they both auditioned for SM Entertainment at the age of 18._

_They insisted that they audition together, singing a duet in place of a normal solo. The casting directors were a little annoyed by their demands but they finally let it slide. The two boys sang Eric Benet's "The Last Time". Kyungsoo sang with emotion, his voice sultry and deep, as if he was bitter by the outcome and transforming into the jilted lover in the song. Jongdae complimented him and added his own flavor by attacking the high notes and placing ad-libs here and there. They both sounded amazing but unfortunately, fate only permitted one star to shine. After they sang, the casting directors clapped their hands profusely and began their comments._

_One judge said, "That was amazing guys. I loved your voices. Kyungsoo, your voice filled this whole room and I felt like I was transported to another world. Amazing. Your English pronunciation was great as well. As for Jongdae, you also were great. I loved your high notes and the adlibs you did definitely helped the performance."_

_Another judge mentioned, "Ahh, it's sad that you had to audition together." That attracted their attention._

_"Why?" Jongdae asked._

_"It's because there is no choice but to make comparisons. While Kyungsoo was very technical with his singing, Jongdae was more passionate and it felt more real to me. However, in this industry, we want artists that are malleable into an image that would trend and take the market by storm. And unfortunately, Jongdae, you don't fit that at all." The other two judges nodded in agreement._

_"I'm so sorry, but we can only accept Kyungsoo. So what do you say Kyungsoo? Ready to join SM Entertainment?" The final judge asked. She looked very expectant, knowing that anyone would be a fool to let this offer down._

_"Can I please think about it? I came here with the idea that Jongdae and I would come and blow you all away. I didn't know that I would be the only chosen. Is that okay?" The casting directors understood. They simply gave him a card and then they were off. Kyungsoo felt guilty. Their plan was to come and win it all: even though it was not verbally said, they both knew that their journey would stop if the other didn't get in. They were now walking out of the building and were on their way home. On their way there, no words were exchanged, silence enveloping the two singers._

_"Jongdae-shii" Kyungsoo began._

_"Congratulations Kyungsoo. You killed it out there today!" Jongdae replied with an elated smile. That only served to infuriate Kyungsoo more._

_"But you didn't get in! We made a promise to be together forever!" Kyungsoo was now crying. Being the best friend that he was, Jongdae took Kyungsoo's head and placed it on his chest._

_"I know but this is it. You were always more talented than me. I don't want you to waste this opportunity. Take it." He simply said. Kyungsoo continued to cry in his chest. "Hey hey, stop crying baby doe, people are starting to stare. I love you but I don't want to be mistaken as a gay guy." That made Kyungsoo smile. Since Jongdae was slightly taller, Kyungsoo lifted his head to meet Jongdae's gaze._

_"I love you too, Chenchen." Their arguments however didn't stop there. Often this topic of conversation was brought up and the two ended up disagreeing on what should be done. Kyungsoo kept on thinking that he was leaving Jongdae behind while Jongdae felt that he was holding Kyungsoo back. So he only did what he thought was best. Leave him._

In another dressing room, Kyungsoo was seen being congratulated by SM's CEO and his labelmates.

"Yay! D.O. Congratulations. You deserved this win!" Taeyeon, SNSD's leader, remarked.

"Thank you noona!" Kyungsoo said absent-mindedly, his mind, similar to Jongdae's, was also transported to someplace else. He reminisced about the time that Jongdae left him, his heart shattering into a million pieces and anger filling the void in his heart. 

_It was turning into a month since their auditions, and Kyungsoo being accepted to SM Entertainment. Jongdae and he hadn't seen each other for a week now and Kyungsoo was becoming a little scared of what may have happened. On impulse, he left his house for Jongdae's. After thirty minutes, he finally saw Jongdae's house. He got out of his car and knocked on the door. After a couple of minutes, Jongdae's mother opened the door._

_"Oh, Kyungsoo, what are you doing here?"_

_"Hi Mrs. Kim, I was just wondering if Jongdae's home. Is he here? I haven't talked to him in a week, and I was worried if he was sick." Mrs. Kim suddenly had a solemn expression._

_"I'm sorry to tell you this Kyungsoo but Jongdae has left."_

_"What do you mean? Where did he go?" Kyungsoo's voice started cracking, the boy verging on tears._

_"He didn't want me to tell you this but he went to America to study music there. It was a last-minute thing. Jongdae felt that he was holding you back. He wants to learn more about music and come back and be on par with you. He did tell me to tell you to accept SM's offer. Become a star and make him proud. That's what he said. I'm sorry that you had to find out this way."_

_Kyungsoo fell to the ground, his body weak from this unexpected news. He started crying uncontrollably. Mrs. Kim quickly picked Kyungsoo up and let him cry._

_"I'm also sad that he left. He loves you, you know? I think more than a best friend. I can also see that you feel the same way. Do us all a favor, become a star, and make Jongdae come back, okay?" Kyungsoo did nothing else but nod in reply._

_That's how Kyungsoo finally accepted becoming a trainee under SM Entertainment. Initially, he sent Jongdae emails telling him to come back home, but to no avail, Jongdae never replied. Kyungsoo's faith in him started to fade away and the prospect of becoming a star was far too great that he started becoming more confident, leaving the sensitive Kyungsoo behind. Along with that shedding of skin, he developed this anger for Jongdae-- the fact that he never contacted him back made Kyungsoo feel like he was unimportant and the friendship that the two had all their life was all for nothing. His love for the boy was locked up in his heart, with a promise to never fall in love and risk getting hurt. A year had passed and Kyungsoo was finally debuting as a solo artist. He was scared but that outer shell of confidence helped him maneuver through the idol world with ease. He started promoting and soon enough, his singles and albums became big hits._

_That was three years ago, and nothing had changed --- except that fact that Jongdae had debuted as a solo artist. And now, the singers had found themselves at odds with each other. The awkwardness that they experienced whenever they would see each other was evident by their previous exchanges._

"Earth to D.O? Are you there?" Yoona shouted in Kyungsoo's ear. 

"Ahhaa. I'm sorry noona I was a little distracted." He replied.

"Soooo, are you going to treat us out for dinner tonight?" Sooyoung asked. Although she had an amazing figure, she was an avid eater, which reminded Kyungsoo of a forgotten friend (that's how she became his favorite out of the whole company).

"Anything for you Sooyoung noona!" Kyungsoo barked. And that's how they ended up going out that night and eating to their hearts' content. 

Fast forward to several weeks later, and Kyungsoo was notified of his schedule. Since he was on his hiatus, he was not expected to show up in music shows but variety shows were a different story.

"Tomorrow, you'll have a shooting for Strong Heart. They want you to come up with a story that you can tell the whole world that hasn't been told before. Can you do that?" His manager asked him. He simply nodded. But what story to tell? Previous recordings and shows have emptied him of fascinating and funny stories to tell. All but one. That story of betrayal and love lost. But was that too scandalous? Will that affect his image? After all, he was also a star. And a clear compromise of that stardom was that people were privy to his private life. After a half-hour of deliberation, he decided to share his side of the story, as long as he would omit Jongdae's name. Little did he know that the same was on that other person's mind. Kyungsoo called it a night and fell asleep, dreaming of the audience's reaction as well as Jongdae's. 

Jongdae woke up feeling especially well that morning, excited that YG finally let him do a recording for a variety show. Since his debut a few months ago, YG advised him to focus on his music first before making appearances on shows. He respected YG's wish, but the thought of interacting with other idols and other people excited him to the point where he started feeling giddy in anticipation of participating in shows. Being a newcomer in the scene certainly nervous but making friends made the situation a little bit lighter. He was briefed by his manager on the usual mannerisms that idols need to show in the show and the type of questions that the MCs were going to ask. He was also asked to share a story that would entice the audience and raise his image with his fans. He didn't have many stories to tell. He couldn't bring up some of the situations he had in America because they were hugely inappropriate. The only thing he could think of was to tell them the story of how he made a decision to lose his best friend for both of their benefits. He met up with the president for some final debriefing and then he was asked to go to the shooting site.

When he was there, he was led to a room with all of the idol guests. There, they were told what to expect and to give very fresh reactions. The MCs also told them to just let loose, and have fun, and most importantly: be genuine. They were all asked to write a title for their story when suddenly another person entered the room. The guy was late and the veteran star was greeted by the MCs very warmly.

"Welcome D.O. Were happy that you entertained our request for you to be here. These are the other idol guests for today's recording." The MC pronounced. Kyungsoo then started bowing his head at each of them, not really noticing that ‘that’ person was present as well. Without any moment to spare, the idols were lead to the site and were each assigned different seats. Kyungsoo was left to talk with the MCs because he was late. Jongdae muttered a curse word under his mouth when he saw the boy. He then hoped for the best, knowing that he couldn't change his story anymore. The MCs told them to be genuine and a fake story would clearly show that he was lying. And besides, he was a bad liar anyways. 

When the others were seated and the show was about to start, Kyungsoo hurriedly tried to find his seat. Unfortunately, he was seated next to the one person he wished he wouldn't see right now. Their eyes met and the air turned dense. The other idols must have noticed because they all looked at the two with curious expressions. Usually, idols were courteous with each other, bowing in appreciation and respect. It was almost time for the show to start so one PD quickly told Kyungsoo to sit down. He complied but he still sat there shocked. He started cursing uncontrollably to himself, the curse words flowing naturally. He thought of changing his story to something less dramatic but he knew that that would come off as dishonest. He then just simply wished for the recording to go as smoothly as possible.

"Welcome to Strong Heart everyone. We have a lot of guests today from veteran singers to newcomers. This is an episode you won't want to miss." Applause could be heard and the show continued on without a hitch. 

Suddenly, "Woah! Look at that! Both D.O and Chen have the exact same story title." Jongdae and Kyungsoo sighed to themselves and gave a wide grin smile. Knowing their cues, they looked at each other in shock as if they didn't know each other. The title being, "The time I lost my best friend."

"Since Chen is a rookie, I suggest letting him tell his story first. Don't you agree?" Kyungsoo nodded.

"I really don't know how to start. So when I was about 18 I had a best friend that I shared this dream of singing with. Since we were younger - we practiced really hard and we decided to audition to get into SM Entertainment together. As much as I hate to admit it, that friend was always better than me. I struggled with singing then and it came to no surprise when they chose to accept him alone. But this friend was stubborn. He didn't want to do it if I wasn't with him so I did what I thought was best. I left for the United States to study music without telling him."

"Wow. What an amazing friend! It must have been so hard for you to leave your best friend." The MC said. "But wait a second, did your friend debut?"

"Yes."

That earned collective gasps from everyone.

"Is he famous?" The host prodded.

"Yes."

"Can you tell us his name? I'm really curious now."

"I'm sorry but I can't. As you know we didn't end in good terms. After I left, we didn't talk anymore and in some aspects, I regretted doing it but I am happy to see him doing so well."

The other guests were giving him sympathetic looks and some female idols were tearing up.

"I'm sorry that you had to bring up that painful memory. Hopefully, D.O's story would have a cheerful resolution."

The other guests and the audience looked at Kyungsoo expectantly, ready to hear his story but what came out was a loud sob. "I'm sorry" Kyungsoo wiped his tears off. "I can't do this." Kyungsoo stood up and prepared to leave but a hand caught his wrist and held him in place. He looked at his left and Jongdae was clutching unto him. Jongdae stood up and hugged Kyungsoo. He muttered encouraging words and the two boys started crying then. All of their feelings for the past couple of years finally was let out.

"Don't tell me. D.O-shii is Chen's best friend?" Jongdae only nodded in response. Still hugging the boy, Jongdae led Kyungsoo from the studio and into his dressing room, not caring about the shoot.

"Kyungsoo. I missed you so much. I'm so sorry." Jongdae cried as he tried to get his feelings across. "Singing was our dream and I know how much you wanted to be a star so I only did what I thought was best."

"I became a star for you! I wanted you to come back and I thought that you were just bluffing that once I accept SM's offer you would fly back home. But you didn't. I became angry and hurt and I loved you. I still love you." Kyungsoo angrily replied. Tears flowing down his face.

"Who said that our love story needed to end? It wasn't our time then but what's going to stop us from trying our love now?"

"Are you mad? We're singers. Idols. You can't be gay if you're an idol. Your career's going to be over."

"I don't care. I lost you once before. I can't lose you again. Please Kyungsoo, I love you and I never stopped loving you. Please." Jongdae looked at Kyungsoo and the other boy lost his willpower and attacked Jongdae on the lips.

"Okay."

"Really? I know that we need to be careful but I'd rather lose my career than lose you." Jongdae laughed. Kyungsoo kissed him again.

"Now come on. Let's go. Are you ready to face the cameras again? I want to hear your part of the story."

"It's the same exact story but from my perspective. What difference does it make?"

"Well this time, you can add a little resolution at the end. Just do me a favor? Don't mention that we love each other okay? I want to be a singer for a couple more years." Jongdae joked and Kyungsoo hit him in response. 

When you're given the choice between LOVE and STARDOM, which would you choose? Well, who said you had to? For Kyungsoo and Jongdae - they were able to attain both.


End file.
